Boris Becker Reveals Trauma, Weight Loss During Eight Months in UK Prison

Boris Becker, the six-time Grand Slam tennis champion, served eight months in UK prisons Wandsworth and Huntercombe after being convicted in 2022 for hiding £2.5 million in assets to avoid repaying creditors following his 2017 bankruptcy. Becker described his prison experience as mentally and physically harrowing, revealing he lost significant weight due to emotional stress, poor food, and harsh conditions, and noted that prisoners effectively controlled the prison environment. His tennis fame offered no advantage, and he spent months earning the trust of guards by teaching stoic philosophy and working in the gym. Becker credited his wife, Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, who is currently pregnant with their child, as his lifeline throughout incarceration, with phone calls providing essential emotional support. Despite his release and deportation after serving part of his sentence, Becker admitted that the experience still profoundly affects him, causing ongoing struggles such as sleeplessness. The prison ordeal has left lasting scars that continue to impact his daily life nearly three years after release.